Editor's note:
This story has been updated to include a longer portion of Superintendent Mary Outley’s quote from the same interview.
Update: Steve Keenan resigned on Wednesday, Sept. 17 — after the school district released its investigative report.
The Akron Public Schools’ Board of Education on Monday cleared the way for the administration and its legal counsel to eventually terminate suspended Director of Facilities Services Steve Keenan.
Keenan, who was placed on paid administrative leave in early June, is accused of personally profiting after he traded lawn maintenance equipment owned by the district to a dealer in Macedonia, board members said. He then purchased the mowers himself, advertised some of them on Facebook Marketplace as “practically new!” and pocketed profits, according to documents obtained by Signal Akron through a public records request.
On Tuesday, Akron Public Schools released a 17-page investigative report that concluded Keenan knew of the commercial lawn equipment trade ins and profited nearly $11,000 after purchasing them from Baker Vehicle Systems and reselling the mowers.
Board President Carla Jackson said she has reviewed the reports detailing Keenan’s actions and said she came away concerned at the level of autonomy some employees have within the district. His alleged actions appear to violate both state ethics laws and district policy, according to board members, though no criminal referral appears to have been filed with the Akron Police Department by district officials.
“Every part of this that led us to this point, I think needs to be addressed and it may need some disciplinary action,” Jackson said after a special meeting of the board on Monday evening.
Signal Akron obtained Keenan’s written response to the school district’s investigation.
“The allegations are not only disproportionate they are selectively enforced,” he wrote.
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At the meeting, board members unanimously passed a motion to consider Keenan’s termination.
Member Barbara Sykes said that, while this resolution only considered Keenan’s employment, there were other district employees involved. Sykes also wants the matter referred to Akron police, the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office and the IRS.
“Safeguarding public funds is what I consider one of my most important responsibilities on the school board,” Sykes said, “because we’re constantly asking the citizens to pay for what we do here.”
Both Sykes and the district’s attorney, David Sipusic, said it would be up to the superintendent to make a recommendation regarding whether Keenan should be terminated as a result of the investigation.
“We’re going to follow protocols and act to support the law,” Superintendent Mary Outley said of the inquiry, which began in May after an employee brought their concerns to her attention. “I’m just trying to be respectful of the employee.”
Since Keenan was placed on administrative leave, the district’s major construction projects — the building of a combined Pfeiffer Elementary and Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts and the construction of a new North High School – have changed hands again. Executive Director of Business Affairs Debra Foulk is now coordinating those efforts. Keenan could not be reached for comment by phone or text message ahead of the publication of this story.
Documents show APS mowers had low working hours
The lawn maintenance equipment, previously purchased and owned by the district, was traded in to Baker Vehicle Systems in Macedonia, a practice allowed by Board of Education policy.
But, after trading in the mowers, Keenan is alleged to have purchased the equipment from the dealer and then to have resold it through his personal Facebook account. Records also allege that Keenan refurbished the mowers he purchased during work time and that he used school district supplies to complete the work.
Some of the mowers Keenan resold had less than 100 working hours on them.
The records show that if each Marketplace listing successfully sold, Keenan grossed nearly $20,000, minus his costs to purchase the equipment as a private buyer. It’s unclear how much profit he made on the transactions or what he paid to purchase the used mowers from the dealer.
While it’s difficult to verify that Keenan bought the traded-in equipment from Baker Vehicle Systems because it was a private transaction, additional invoice and purchase order documents provided to Signal Akron show several items that match the mowers Keenan listed on Marketplace.
The Marketplace listings under Keenan’s Facebook profile show he sold the following items:
- Two Hustler TrimStar mowers with 82 and 57 working hours, listed for $3,500 each.
- Two Snapper Pro 200XT Zero Turn mowers with 260 and 343 working hours, listed for $4,500 each.
- Hustler FasTrak Commercial Zero Turn mowers with 493 working hours, listed for $3,200.
Some of the items were already marked as sold in the Marketplace documents.
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What is the lifespan of a commercial mower?
The Hustler website states that new TrimStar mowers include a 5-year, 1,200-hour warranty. Each Hustler TrimStar mower Keenan sold on Marketplace had less than 100 working hours.
Keenan’s Facebook Marketplace listings did not list a model year for the mowers.
New Hustler FasTrak mowers come with a 4-year, 750-hour warranty. The FasTrak mower Keenan sold on Marketplace had less than 500 working hours.
A brochure from Snapper shows that the Snapper Pro 200XT Zero Turn mower includes a 4-year, 300-hour warranty. Only one of the two Snapper mowers Keenan sold on Marketplace exceeded 300 hours of use.
Depending on maintenance and usage, commercial mowers are generally expected to last between 1,000 and 3,500 hours for gas engines.
Who supervised Keenan’s work for the district?
According to the 2024-2025 APS organizational chart, Keenan answers directly to the school district’s superintendent and general counsel, a position that had been vacant for years until late July.
There are no dates on the Facebook Marketplace screengrabs provided to Akron schools and obtained by Signal Akron, so it’s unclear which superintendent’s tenure Keenan allegedly resold the equipment under — Outley or former Superintendent Michael Robinson.
What do the Ohio Revised Code or state ethics guidelines dictate?
Keenan’s actions appear to violate Ohio ethics guidelines, though the trading in of equipment to receive a credit toward purchasing similar equipment is allowed by board policy and state law.
“Public officials and employees must not act on situations in which they might gain personally as a result of the decisions they make or their influence as public servants,” state ethics guidance reads.
Typically, violations of the state’s ethics laws don’t result in criminal charges, but may result in fines.
APS board policy states: “Personal property, the value of which does not exceed $10,000, shall be disposed of by the Superintendent in such a manner as will be in the public interest and benefit the School District (see Policy 7300 – Disposition of Real Property/Personal Property and Policy 7310 – Disposition of Surplus Property). If the Board decides to trade an item of personal property as a part or an entire consideration on the purchase price of an item of similar personal property, the Board may trade the personal property upon such terms as are agreed upon by the parties.”
The board policy was initially adopted in 1998 and last revised in 2023. The last time “Baker Vehicle Systems,” the company the mowers were traded to, showed up in a Board of Education agenda was for the purchase of nine mowers on Aug. 24, 2020, according to a search of BoardDocs.
State law also allows for trade-ins of equipment to purchase similar goods, but does state: “The president and the treasurer of the board of education shall execute and deliver deeds or other necessary instruments of conveyance to complete any sale or trade under this section.”
Keenan rose through Akron schools ranks
Keenan began working with APS in 2017 as a small engine repair mechanic. Five years later, records show he was promoted to foreman of the grounds maintenance department. In 2024, he again rose in the ranks, this time signing an administrative contract to become the director of facilities services; his salary jumped to more than $114,000. He received a raise a year later, bringing his salary to more than $121,000.